1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to accessories for pans used to collect condensate and other fluids while positioned under a heavy furnace, air conditioning unit, storage hot water heater tank, or other fluid-producing (or fluid-holding) unit presenting a risk of fluid damage to its surroundings, specifically to a highly impact-resistant and generally mushroom-shaped grommet that can be used in association with a fluid collecting tray or pan as a safety-enhancing vibration isolator that becomes fixed in position between the tray or pan and a heavy furnace, air conditioning unit, storage hot water heater tank, or other fluid-producing or fluid-holding unit presenting a risk of fluid damage to its surroundings. The present invention vibration isolator also provides an installation-assisting benefit for the heavy furnaces, air conditioning units, storage hot water heater tanks, or other fluid-producing or fluid-holding units as they are moved across a pan into their usable positions. To simplify the following description of the vibration isolator, only the term “pan” will be used hereinafter when describing its positioning, since for purposes of this disclosure the terms “pan” and “tray” are considered interchangeable. The supporting pan used with present invention vibration isolators would have a sturdy construction and typically have one or more raised areas that elevate the furnace/unit/tank above the pan's bottom surface to provide space in the pan for the collection of condensate/fluid, and also keep the furnace/unit/tank from remaining in constant contact with the collected condensate/fluid. One or more indentations or receiving holes in the top surfaces of the raised areas of the pan are each configured to receive the stem of one present invention vibration isolator, the caps of which collectively provide needed elevation and weight distribution management across the various raised areas of the pan and the bottom surface of the supported furnace/unit/tank positioned above it. Present invention vibration isolators are also configured to stay within a raised area indentation or receiving hole better than prior art grommets, thereby reducing post installation movement of the supported furnace/unit/tank relative to the pan and lessening the likelihood for vibration resulting from furnace/unit/tank operation to cause shifting of the furnace/unit/tank from its originally installed position that could lead to premature pan failure or collapse. Use of present invention vibration isolators also provides benefit to furnace/unit/tank installers, as the ribbed construction of the caps of present invention vibration isolators allows them to cushion a heavy furnace/unit/tank as it slides across the raised structure of the pan without rolling over or popping-out of the indentation into which it was placed, as prior art grommets have a tendency to do, thus protecting the underlying pan from stresses that could otherwise create weak points and/or cracks in pan materials and lead to premature pan failure or collapse.
Present invention vibration isolators are made from (or adapted with) highly impact-resistant and high-temperature resistant materials, and can also be configured and used to meet non-combustible clearance requirements in furnace applications. Present invention vibration isolators further provide the additional advantage of enhanced air movement and heat deflection around a furnace/unit. The most preferred embodiment of the present invention vibration isolator is generally mushroom-shaped, having a broad cap and a smaller diameter stem. A tapered connection also exists between cap and stem, which appears similar to illustrations of decurrent and subdecurrent mushroom gill attachment, where gills run partially down the stem. Furthermore, its cap has a diameter dimension larger than its height dimension, a top surface with a central opening, a hollow interior area communicating with the top opening, a broad underside surface, radially-extending ribs and cutouts in its top surface that assist in preventing the vibration isolator from rolling over and/or popping-out as a heavy furnace, tank, or air conditioning unit is moved across them, optional side ribs and cutouts that further assist in preventing rollover, and the cap may have a flat or slightly convex top surface, while the present invention stem has a central bore and an exterior surface with at least one outwardly-depending projection that is thicker at its top so as to create a wedge shape that resists removal from the pan indentation within which it is placed during use (even resisting rollover/removal when the heavy furnace or other fluid-producing unit is slid across the top surface of the pan during installation), with the distal tips of the projection or projections also being sufficiently flared-out to flip over as they are inserted into an indentation to provide the versatility of a tight fit within more than one size of indentation or receiving hole. The folding over of the projection tips as a present invention vibration isolator stem starts to pull out of an indentation also provides resistance to separation of the isolator from the indentation or receiving hole. A first preferred embodiment shown in the accompanying illustrations has a small opening in a domed cap, and two projections extending outwardly from its stem. A second preferred embodiment of present invention vibration isolator is also disclosed herein that has projections father spaced apart than in the first preferred embodiment, while a third preferred embodiment has a wider diameter top opening in a cap with a flat top area, an increased number of ribs that enhances its vibration reducing effectiveness, and side ribs on its cap that further enhance vibration dampening performance.
2. Description of the Related Art
When air conditioning condensate and other condensates/fluids are collected to prevent a risk of damage to surroundings, overflow and/or back-up into the system producing it may occur. As a result, a fluid collection and/or drain pan placed under the condensate-producing unit typically has a liquid-level-monitoring switch mounted on the pan that sends a shut-off signal to the source of condensate flow to stop it when the amount of fluid collected exceeds a predetermined depth considered safe. However, there are many challenges associated with fluid management through the use of such pans. If a condensate-producing unit (such as an air conditioning system air handler) is installed in an attic, on hot summer days a fluid collection pan under an air conditioning system air handler can be subjected to temperatures exceeding 140-degrees Fahrenheit, which may lead to perimeter wall lean-in and float switch malfunction. Other problems associated with fluid collection pan installation involve installation sites that expose fluid collection pans to significant seasonal temperature fluctuations and tight spaces that require installers to bend, twist, and/or step on a pan at least once before installation is complete. Pans installed for support of furnaces and other units responsible for fluid damage risk to their surroundings may also be subject to temperature and space limitation issues similar to that experienced in air conditioning applications, and in addition furnace installations typically require a designated amount of non-combustible clearance. Furthermore, in addition to the challenge of installing them in tight spaces, furnaces, air conditioning units, and storage hot water heater tanks are typically heavy, so the furnaces/units/tanks are not usually raised over a fluid collection pan and then lowered down onto its raised support surfaces. Instead, they are typically slid across the raised surfaces of a fluid collection pan. Thus, any vibration isolators to be used between the bottom surface of the furnace/unit/tank and the raised support surfaces of the fluid collection pan must be set into place before the furnace/unit/tank is slid across the raised support surfaces, and the vibration isolators must be configured to remain in their designated position of use while the furnace/unit/tank is moved across them. However some prior art vibration isolators come loose from their original positions as a result of the movement of a furnace/unit/tank across them, disrupting the optimal weight distribution management contemplated for the pan. The flat or slightly convex top area of the cap of present invention vibration isolators, in combination with the array of ribs and cutout areas thereon, as well as the wedge-shaped projections outwardly depending from its smaller diameter stem, all work together to maintain present invention vibration isolators in their original locations within a designated indentation or receiving hole in a pan and resist rollover and/or popping-out, allowing for optimal performance of both vibration isolator and pan. Materials selected for fluid collection pans are chosen for their strength and temperature resistance, as well as high impact resistance and corrosion resistance. Although present invention vibration isolators preferably would be made from different materials than the pans supporting them, materials selected for the present invention vibration isolators must have many of the same characteristics as pan materials, and in furnace applications they would also comprise high-temperature resistance and sufficient height dimension to meet the non-combustible clearance requirements. No other vibration isolator is known with the same structure, to function in the same manner as the present invention vibration isolator herein, or provide all of its advantages.